A new survey launched in October is seeking to recruit UK anglers for the Sea Angling 2017 catch and spend diary project, data which is anticipated to reveal more about the state and value of sea angling to the UK.

Sea Angling 2017 is an exciting project in which up to 1,000 sea anglers will be selected to complete a bespoke online catch diary next year and provide information about what they spend. The project seeks to account for what is caught, kept and released and what sea angling is worth, across the whole of the UK.

The survey is commissioned by the Centre for the Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science (Cefas) and is being carried out by research company Substance, who have undertaken a wealth of research to support the development of angling in the UK in the last decade.

The first stage of this project is the Sea Angling 2017 survey in which anglers will record what sea fishing they do and whether they want to take part in the study. Those wishing to take part in the survey or find out more about the project should visit www.seaangling.org.

Dr Kieran Hyder (Cefas) said, ‘It is really important that sea anglers contribute to this survey, as it will help build the evidence needed to support the development of sea angling policy and improve our ability to conserve fish stocks.’

Benefits for anglers who participate in the Diary Study include:

- The chance to take part in the Sea Angling 2017 Diary Study. This will give you: access to a unique Online Catch Diary Tool to record fishing trips and catches; a sea fish identification booklet and catch recording kit (including bespoke waterproof catch recording notebook and tape measure)- A personalised online dashboard to show their activity and catches.- The chance to win tackle vouchers from Fishing Megastore.

All those who take part in the initial survey will be entered into a draw for 2x£50 tackle vouchers from Fishing Megastore. And those taking part in the diary study will be able to enter a draw for Fishing Megastore vouchers in every month they enter data next year.

The survey aims to collect data that is as accurate as possible about what is caught, released and spent by sea anglers in the UK. This will help enable the sea angling community to demonstrate its real impact more effectively. The data collected will be published and provided to national and local policy makers to make better informed decisions on fisheries management, as well as provided to the sea angling community with information to enable them to develop their own views and policies.